The moment they stepped over the threshold of the inn, they saw Sparrow, who was sitting behind the counter with her chin propped in her hand, idly pushing the beads of an abacus back and forth. She suddenly looked up, her eyes lighting at once. She hurriedly pushed open the counter flap and came running over, taking three steps for every two.
“Good day, Sister Lin.” Sparrow skidded to a stop in front of Lin Wu, then promptly gave her a proper curtsy. She turned to the boy beside her. “And you too, Jing.”
Lin Wu nodded with a smile, and Lin Jing softly returned the greeting. “Sister Que’er.”
Only then did Sparrow turn her attention to Tigerhead. She pursed her lips. “Well, look at you, Tigerhead! You vanished first thing this morning, and it turns out you sneaked out to play!”
“It’s already late morning,” Tigerhead protested righteously. “How can you still call it first thing in the morning?”
Sparrow was briefly at a loss for words. The truth was, she had overslept—but she quickly found another excuse. “You’ve been gone for half the day. Grandfather and Father and Mother will be worried when they come back!”
“I told Grandfather before I left. Who are you trying to scare?” Tigerhead wasn’t buying it. With his elder brother away from home, there was hardly anyone he had to fear.
“We did lots of things today! I learned how to prepare the suobing! And I followed Sister Lin all over the east and west sides of the city and looked at several houses!” As he spoke, his short legs kept scampering back and forth across the main room, as though he had endless energy to burn.
Lin Wu lowered her head to look at Lin Jing and asked softly, “We’ve been out for most of the day. Are you tired? Do you want to go back to your room and rest your feet?”
Her own legs felt a little weak and sore, yet the two children still seemed full of energy. She couldn’t tell whether children simply had energy to spare at that age, or whether they had grown so sturdy from being well cared for.
Lin Jing shook his head. “I’m not tired.”
Tigerhead and Sparrow were both so noisy, but they had come especially to visit. He couldn’t possibly leave A Wu to deal with the two of them alone.
Lin Wu therefore asked Little Zheng to take the three children to sit in the pavilion in the back courtyard. She carried her things back to the guest room first, tidied them up, and then took the earthenware jar to the kitchen. As she passed through the courtyard, she caught sight of several little heads pressed together in the pavilion, chattering away. Reassured, she went into the kitchen.
Unexpectedly, the moment Lin Jing saw her turn away, he immediately ran after her from the pavilion. The other two followed behind like a pair of little tails.
“Sister, are we still going to prepare the suobing?” Tigerhead asked first, tipping up his face. His eyes were shining.
“Not today.” Lin Wu shook her head. “We can’t eat suobing for every meal. Besides, we’re almost out of the dried suobing cakes. There’s only one left.”
“Then…” Sparrow hesitated before speaking. “I’ve never prepared dried suobing by myself. Sister, could you let me try with that last piece?” As she spoke, she lowered her head and rummaged through the little purse at her waist. After a moment, she took out a small piece of silver and held it out.
Lin Wu did not take it. She merely smiled. “That’s wonderful. I was just worrying about how to divide the last piece. You’ve solved my problem for me, Sparrow.”
So she took the final dried suobing cake and let the children handle it themselves beneath the shade of the lean-to. With her ears temporarily blessed with some quiet, Lin Wu began thinking about lunch. They had been out walking all morning, so they needed something to fill their stomachs.
She looked over the ingredients at hand and remembered that there was still some fried rice she had prepared for the journey by boat. She decided to make some chao tuan.
The chao tuan of this era did not mean fried dumplings, but rather a type of dumpling made from ground fried rice. Fried rice was milled into flour, mixed with water and kneaded into a dough, then dyed with floral and herbal juices to create patterns on the surface. Yet although people called it chao tuan, they did not like referring to it by that name—perhaps because of some hard-to-explain taboo.
Lin Wu, of course, had no intention of making chao tuan as such. She had no coloring agents on hand. She borrowed the kitchen’s stone mortar and ground the fried rice into powder, then added cool water and slowly stirred it into a paste. She mixed in a little wheat flour, dry yeast, and sugar, stirred everything thoroughly, and set it aside to rise.
When she went outside to look, the children in the pavilion were chattering even more excitedly than before. Curious, Lin Wu walked over. Sparrow had already finished her bowl of suobing and was now standing beside the stone bench with one hand on her hip, waving the other through the air. She had the commanding air of a general laying out a grand strategy. Even Lin Jing was tilting his head up, listening intently.
“Just think about it,” Sparrow told her two listeners. “We can hire people to make lots of dried suobing cakes like these, then package each portion with a set amount of dried vegetables and meat sauce, all wrapped neatly in oiled paper. Merchants and travelers could carry a portion with them on the road. All they’d need to do is find some hot water, and they’d have a steaming bowl of soup noodles to eat. Wouldn’t that be convenient? This business is bound to sell well!”
Tigerhead nodded vigorously, and Lin Jing gave a soft hum of agreement.
Encouraged, Sparrow raised her voice. “We can start by trying it with the familiar trading caravans from the Zhi Yun Trading House! If it works, we can sell it all across Huzhou, and then throughout the realm! By then, we’ll be rolling in money!”
Tigerhead was swept up in her enthusiasm. He jumped to his feet on the stone bench and waved his chubby hands. “That’s right, that’s right! When the time comes, even my elder brother will have to look at us with new respect—he’ll have to come work for us! From now on, I, Tigerhead, will be the junior proprietor of Zhi Yun Trading House…”
He puffed out his chest, then pointed at Sparrow. “You’ll be the second junior proprietor, Sister!”
With that, he grabbed Lin Jing’s hand and declared grandly, “Jing will be the fourth junior proprietor!”
Lin Wu, who had been listening nearby, couldn’t help laughing. She walked over and asked, “Why do you start counting from two? Who’s the first junior proprietor?”
Tigerhead answered without the slightest hesitation, as though it were obvious. “That would naturally be my elder brother.”
Lin Jing, who had been listening quietly all this time, blinked and looked at Tigerhead. “But didn’t you just say we were going to make your elder brother come work for us? Then he’d be a junior shop assistant. How could he also be a proprietor? Besides…”
He pressed his lips together before continuing, “These suobing were made by my mother. She should be the chief proprietor.”
Lin Wu couldn’t hold back her laughter.
Young Master Shen was still somewhere on the road to the Southern Cliffs, yet for no reason at all he had already been stripped of his title as “first junior proprietor” and demoted straight to “junior shop assistant.”
“What sort of grand business are you planning?” Lin Wu asked, taking a seat on the stone bench.
The children immediately began talking over one another, explaining their magnificent plan in full. It turned out that after Sparrow and Tigerhead had prepared the bowl of suobing themselves, they had discovered what they believed to be an incredible business opportunity. The more they thought about it, the more convinced they became that it had great promise.
Such a keen instinct for business was indeed to be expected from children of a merchant family.
“Not bad, not bad. But I do have a few questions,” Lin Wu said, pouring a basin of cold water over their enthusiasm. “For example, the dried suobing cakes, dried vegetables, and meat sauce—any household with even a little skill in the kitchen could probably make them at home. Why would people go out of their way to buy yours?”
Modern instant noodles might involve other kinds of technology, but Lin Wu knew nothing about those. At present, the most she could do was steam the suobing and then dry them out—and that was hardly a rare technique in this era.
By now, the making of travel rations had become highly developed. Besides stir-fried rice, for instance, travelers commonly carried ring cakes—made by mixing flour with honey water and baking the dough into hollow rings that were both delicious and long-lasting. There was also hanju, made by winding fine noodles together, deep-frying them, and storing them once they had dried. To look at, they were already much like instant noodles. So these blocks of dried noodle cake could hardly be considered anything novel.
Sparrow and Tigerhead stared blankly at her questions before sitting back down on the stone bench.
Sparrow thought for a moment, then asked, “Then… what if we sell them cheaper than everyone else?”
“Who would buy them?” Lin Wu asked in turn.
“Caravans! And people traveling long distances!” Tigerhead answered eagerly, counting them off on his fingers.
This time, Sparrow had calmed down. She shook her head. “That won’t do. Tigerhead, think about it. If a large caravan needs to stock up on provisions, why wouldn’t they simply have their own cooks make them? The ingredients and labor would cost less, and they could prepare everything according to their own tastes.”
Lin Wu nodded. That was the crux of the matter. Just like the large caravan she had once traveled with, most big caravans had an entire kitchen staff and ample supplies of rice, flour, and other staples. Moreover, caravans generally traveled by day and camped by night, so they were not pressed for time. Whether they wanted noodle cakes or steamed buns, the cooks had enough time to knead the dough and make them fresh.
What was more, compared with unprocessed grains and flour, these noodles had undergone an additional stage of preparation, which increased the labor involved while making them less durable in storage. And compared with flour, noodles had been treated in a way somewhat akin to puffing. For the same number of calories, they actually took up more storage space. Even in modern times, when storage volume was taken into account, flour and compressed biscuits offered far greater caloric efficiency by volume than instant noodles.
Thus, in both the modern world and the present one, instant noodles were better suited for individuals or small groups who needed a quick meal or a temporary boost. True long-distance caravans had more practical options.
Most importantly, without modern industrial conditions, it would be difficult for them to dry the noodles completely. And without suitable packaging technology, keeping out dampness and preventing mold would be even harder.
With the limited resources available, people of this era had already devised countless ingenious ways to prepare and preserve food. Lin Wu knew that her own knowledge and experience could not compare with that of the master craftsmen who had spent decades immersed in their respective trades.
Seeing the children fall silent, each of them lowering their head in thought, Lin Wu softened her voice. “The fact that you came up with this idea at all is already very clever. And having the ambition to sell it across the entire realm is even more remarkable. With minds like yours and the courage to match, surely we’ll be able to think of an even better idea, won’t we?”
“Yes!” Sparrow lifted her face, her voice bright once more. “Grandfather and Father and Mother always say that, on the road of commerce, the most important thing isn’t capital. It’s…”
“An eye for opportunity!” Tigerhead cut in eagerly. “You have to see clearly what other people need!”
Sparrow nodded. “That’s right. An eye for opportunity. Let’s think again—what do people truly need, but find difficult to arrange for themselves?”
Lin Wu looked at their bright, spirited faces and said gently, “Good. We’ll think about it together, little by little.”
She stayed with the children a while longer before getting up and returning to the kitchen. The rice batter had fermented sufficiently. She took out several bowls, brushed a thin layer of oil around their insides, and stirred the batter gently to release the air. Then she slowly poured it into the bowls, giving each one a few light taps to eliminate the bubbles. From the small porcelain jar Tigerhead had brought that morning, she took out several candied cherries and placed one in the very center of each bowl. Only then did she arrange the bowls in the steamer and put on the lid.
While the cakes steamed, she returned to the pavilion. The children had long since abandoned their grand plans and begun chatting about everyday matters.
“When you move into the new courtyard, you’ll have to tidy it up properly. Tigerhead and I will come help you pull the weeds,” Sparrow said earnestly.
Tigerhead nodded repeatedly. He had already squatted beside the stone steps at the edge of the pavilion and casually pulled up a small clump of wild grass, holding it up as he declared, “That’s right! I’m an expert at pulling weeds! There are so many flowers and weeds growing wild in our courtyard—I pulled out lots of them myself!”
Little Zheng could not help laughing. Young Master Hutou was hardly pulling weeds. He simply tore up anything he happened to spot, often mercilessly destroying the flowers, and had been thoroughly scolded for it more than once. Fortunately, the courtyard they had viewed that day did not have many flowers.
Lin Jing looked at the limp little handful of grass in his hands. “Don’t you two have to go to school?”
“Ah…” Tigerhead and Sparrow’s heads drooped at once.
But Tigerhead immediately lifted his little head again. Waving the grass in his hand, he looked at Lin Jing and said, “Then, Jing, you should come to school too! We could play together there!”
Lin Jing shook his head. “I’m not going to school. I have to be my mother’s little bookkeeper.”
“Wow!” Sparrow gave a soft gasp. “You already know how to do sums?”
Lin Jing nodded primly.
Tigerhead brightened at once. “Then what kind of business are you going to run? I don’t have to be a bookkeeper—I can work as your shop assistant! I have a loud voice, so I can call out to customers!”
Lin Wu happened to be walking over. Lin Jing looked up at her and said, “We’re going to sell cakes. We sold them at the Lingzhou docks before.”
“Wow!” Sparrow and Tigerhead exclaimed together.
Tigerhead leaned toward Lin Jing eagerly. “Then you have to call me the next time you set up a stall! My second sister and I are very good shop assistants!”
He began counting off his accomplishments on his fingers. “I’ve fetched pastries from the shop for Big Brother, delivered messages, and even ground ink for him while he was writing! And when Big Brother was busy, I fed the fat koi in the courtyard. I’ve even met with guests he didn’t want to see!”
Lin Wu walked over and gently patted Lin Jing’s little head. Listening to Tigerhead recount his glorious achievements, she could see that Young Master Shen really did make full use of his younger brother. Still, looking at Lin Jing beside her, she felt that a child his age ought to be attending school. He could not follow her around the markets forever. She would have to think carefully about how to arrange it.
“Then we’ll have to thank Tigerhead and Sparrow for keeping us in mind. Once we’ve settled in, if we really do set up a stall, we certainly won’t forget to invite you two little experts to come and give us your advice,” Lin Wu said softly. “As it happens, the rice cakes in the steamer should be ready now. Come and see whether they suit your tastes.”
At once, the children followed her happily, streaming toward the kitchen and staring eagerly at the steamer.
When the time was up, Lin Wu lifted the lid. Clouds of hot steam billowed out, carrying the sweet fragrance of rice and fruit. As the mist cleared, several bowls of rice cakes appeared in the steamer, their surfaces smooth and lustrous, as white as jade. Their texture was fine and delicate, with just the slightest springiness. At the very center of each cake sat a plump candied cherry. Its honeyed sheen had seeped into the cake around it, creating a soft gradient of pale red. The sight was utterly charming.
“Wow, wow, wow!” Tigerhead and Sparrow exclaimed again and again.
Lin Jing rose onto his toes to get a better look. “Cherry Rice Cakes.”
“Mmm, that’s a fitting name.” Lin Wu smiled. Using a folded, thick cloth to protect her hands, she carefully removed the bowls one by one and placed them on a wooden tray before carrying them to the pavilion.
The children followed close behind, one after another, like a string of obedient little tails.
Once the rice cakes had cooled to lukewarm, Lin Wu handed everyone a spoon. The children began scooping them up one spoonful at a time, blowing on each bite before sending it into their mouths.
Lin Jing narrowed his eyes in delight, his little feet swinging gently beneath the stone bench. “It’s good.”
After being steamed, the cherry preserve had mellowed into a gentle sweetness that seeped through the fluffy rice cake. The fragrance of fruit mingled with that of rice—fresh and sweet without being cloying.
“It’s so delicious!” Tigerhead declared loudly through his stuffed cheeks. “I’m not going to be a shop assistant anymore. I’m going to be a regular customer who comes every day!”
Sparrow nodded as well. “When Sister Lin and Jing open their stall, we’ll definitely be the very first customers to come and support you.”
Lin Jing swallowed a bite, then tilted his little head. He seemed to recall the business they had run at Lingzhou Wharf and looked at Lin Wu. “The first customer gets a discount of one coin?”
He remembered that this was how they had sold their flatbreads in Huzhou.
“Then I’ll be the first customer!” Tigerhead immediately shouted. Turning to Sparrow, he added, “Second Sister, you’re not allowed to fight me for it!”
Sparrow shot him a sidelong glance. “I don’t want it anyway, you little miser.”
After swallowing the rice cake in her mouth, Lin Wu said gently, “That would be wonderful. If the day ever comes when we open for business, the good-luck honor of being Huzhou’s first customer will certainly be saved for you two.”
After finishing the rice cakes, they sat and chatted for quite a while, until a carriage sent by the Shen family arrived outside the inn and took the two children home.
Once the two lively little guests had left, Lin Wu took Lin Jing back to their room for an afternoon nap. People in those days often had the habit of resting at midday. Sometimes they would sleep so deeply that by the time they awoke, the sky at the horizon had already darkened.
Lin Wu and Lin Jing did not sleep quite that long, however. They woke after less than half an hour, at just the right time—Broker He had arrived.
This time, the house’s owner was accompanying her. He was a man of about forty, thin and spare, with a faint habitual furrow between his brows. His face revealed little of his emotions. He was taciturn, answering only what was asked, but he seemed honest enough and made no attempt to give them trouble.
With Shopkeeper Wang there to witness the proceedings, the two sides haggled back and forth before finally settling on a monthly rent of one string and one hundred coins, with three months to be paid in full at once. Once the terms were agreed upon, Broker He led them to find the clerk responsible for this area, and they completed all the necessary formalities.
After putting away the contract, Lin Wu gazed at the fading light outside the window, her heart finally easing.
All along this journey, they had lived in travelers’ inns and lodgings, drifting along with cargo carts, passenger boats, and freight vessels. Their days had always been makeshift, their steps hurried and uncertain. Now, having found a foothold in Huzhou, they had finally taken their first truly solid step onto the ground.
She had only just tucked the contract into their bundle when Lin Jing’s voice rang out. “Are we going to the courtyard with the well today?”
Lin Wu turned around and nodded. “Yes. We’ll move there once we’ve packed everything up. But the courtyard has been empty for a long time, so there’s quite a bit of weeds, and the rooms will need a thorough cleaning too.”
“I’ll pull the weeds!” Lin Jing said at once.
“Our A Jing is such a capable boy.” Lin Wu smoothed down the lock of hair that had been tousled upward by his nap. “Once we’ve cleared away the weeds and made some space in the courtyard, we can plant a few things. What would A Jing like to grow?”
“Scallions,” Lin Jing answered without the slightest hesitation.
Lin Wu blinked. “Why scallions?”
“A Wu needs scallions to make flatbreads. We can also grow Chinese cabbage, which can be used in porridge or noodle soup.” He tilted his head, as though searching his memory, then added, “We could grow mugwort and fleeceflower root too. Those can be sold for money.”
Lin Wu could not help laughing. She had not expected little Lin Jing to be so practical, or to have already made so many plans.
“All right, then. We’ll plant some scallions. Who knows? We may even have to rely on A Jing to water them in the future.”
“Okay!” Lin Jing exclaimed, suddenly filled with a sense of importance at being entrusted with such a responsibility.
